The commission held closed hearings
in Newfoundland, starting in St. John's and travelling across the island
on the railway.

The Newfoundland Royal Commission report was
published in October 1933.

The Newfoundland Royal Commission, 1933 (The Amulree Commission)

In November 1932, in the depths of the Great Depression, the Newfoundland
government led by F.C. Alderdice let it be known that there would be a partial
default on payments on the public debt, which then stood at approximately $100
million. The British and Canadian governments were alarmed, fearing a negative
impact on the already fragile stock markets, and thus on the credit of Canada
and other British dominions. It was therefore agreed that in the short term,
Canada and Britain would help Newfoundland meet the full debt payments, pending
the report of a royal commission of inquiry.

The British government appointed the chairman, Lord Amulree. The Canadian
government appointed C.A. Magrath, and the Newfoundland government Sir William
Stavert. Both Magrath and Stavert were Canadian bankers. The commissioners were
assisted by an official from the Dominions Office who was to have a long
association with Newfoundland, P.A. Clutterbuck.

The commission held closed hearings in Newfoundland, starting in St. John's
and travelling across the island on the railway. The members then went on to
Ottawa to meet members of the Canadian government. It was made very clear to
the commissioners that many Newfoundlanders had lost faith in responsible
government as a system, and in their political leaders. They wanted help,
and they wanted a change: but they did not want confederation, and neither
did the Canadian prime minister, R.B. Bennett.

Sir William E. Stavert, n.d.
As well as being a member of the royal
commission, Stavert was financial advisor to the Newfoundland government.Courtesy of the Provincial Archives of Newfoundland
and Labrador (PANL A23-137), St. John's, Newfoundland. (47 kb)

Officials in London had been discussing the Newfoundland crisis while the
royal commission was on the other side of the Atlantic. When Amulree returned,
he found that these discussions had produced a plan which he was expected to
recommend. Newfoundland's public debt would be rescheduled at a lower rate of
interest, and guaranteed by the British government. This would prevent default,
reassure bondholders, and prevent panic in the markets. But financial
intervention and assistance of this type were incompatible with responsible
government. Thus Newfoundland would have to agree to give up that system of
government temporarily, and allow Britain to administer the country through
an appointed commission.

This became the central recommendation of the Newfoundland Royal Commission,
whose report was published in October 1933. It was justified by the argument
that the predicament in which Newfoundland found itself was the result of
mismanagement, inefficiency, corruption and financial irresponsibility. Thus
the country needed to be given "a rest from politics", and a period of stability,
rehabilitation and reconstruction under the control of Great Britain. Direct rule
would end once Newfoundland was again "self-supporting".

The report was well-received by the press and most members of the public. It
was debated by the legislature in November, which passed an address to the
Crown asking for the suspension of the constitution. In February 1934 the
Commission of Government took office.

Inauguration of the Commission of Government,
February 16, 1934
Newfoundland governor Sir David Murray Anderson speaking at the
inauguration of the Commission of Government.Courtesy of the Provincial Archives of Newfoundland
and Labrador (PANL B4-137), St. John's, Newfoundland. (58 kb)

For all the praise that the Amulree Report initially received, there were some
people in 1933 who voiced serious reservations, and there have been many more
since. The report's criticisms of Newfoundland politicians and the political
system have been seen as unfair and exaggerated, for instance, and its refusal
to consider default a serious option as short-sighted. There was far too little
weight given to the impact of the First World War and the Depression on the
country's economy and finances, and, arguably, the spending record of successive
governments was misrepresented.

Most modern scholars would endorse these and other criticisms, and agree that
Amulree's diagnosis was erroneous and his historical analysis flawed. They
would probably point out, however, that the report has some astute and valuable
things to say - on the Newfoundland economy, for instance - and that it is still
very much worth reading. It is one of the most important documents in
Newfoundland and Labrador history, marking the end of 79 years of responsible
government, the start of a 15-year political hiatus, and, some might argue,
the beginning of the road to confederation.